Friday, January 8, 2010

Week Nineteen - Day Five: A Positive Outlook

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 34 min.
TIME BACK: 32 min.
WEATHER: clear, -16C, 6km/hr wind there; clear, -6C, 6km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, fleece mid-layer jacket, turtleneck, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
The Week in Review
It's Friday, and I haven't really enjoyed biking this week. In fact, I've been deliriously happy that I get to rest my weary bones over the weekend, hoping to melt away the soreness that has been seeping into my thighs and hips and even upper arms and shoulders (keep in mind that over these icy rutty streets and sidewalks, biking has been like riding a freakin' jackhammer for an hour a day). One day my bike lock froze and I was unable to open it until I'd been fiddling around with it in the freezing cold for 10 minutes. I think by then the key (which stays indoors with me during the day) had gotten cold enough in the frosty air to shrink and fit into the lock properly. It was annoying. I also had a near-fall when I encountered a trifecta of hazards: a large icy speed bump, having to make a 90 degree turn, and pedestrians who either could not see me or hear my bell, or just chose to ignore me. This confluence of factors led to a near-fall and immediate sloppy recovery that led to another near-fall. It was not graceful.

But at the end of this first week back to the daily grind after the holidays, I will choose to look back at these past few days and rather than focus on all the times I swore out loud or questioned why the hell I'm doing this, focus on the good things. Because there are always good things! For instance, one day as I was riding home along the northern rim of the river valley, I spotted a pedestrian stop and take a picture of the sunset. I looked out across the valley and saw what compelled this man to capture the scenery: a rich pink-orange sky layered under progressively darker blues, the smallest hint of the top of the sun peaking out over the horizon just before it disappeared, the pink-blue light casting long shadows on the glowing white snow of the trees and wide frozen river below. It was beautiful. I met this pedestrian at a light and we had a friendly chat as we waited for the light to turn. It made my day.


From then on, I made a point for the rest of the week of noticing the sunrises and sunsets. The sun doesn't fully rise until about a half-hour after I arrive at work, so I don't see much in the mornings, but even then I'm beginning to see the vague light and pale pinks where the sky meets the horizon that promise the coming of the sun. This is hopeful for me - it reminds me that the days are indeed getting longer, even if I can't tell quite yet. And best of all, the sun sets towards the end of my ride home, so I get to ride into the sunset every day. It's beautiful.

Also, throughout the week I kept running into another bike-commuter at the bike rack at work. Finally, about mid-way through the week, I said hello. The next time I saw him, I started up a conversation - just a brief one, but just enough to remind me that active commuting is a much more social kind of commuting than my lone car rides. I get to chat with pedestrians and other cyclists when we pause at lights together, and ask for winter riding tips from seasoned bike-commuters when I meet up with them at the bike rack. It's nice to feel connected, even part of a community, and that's something I certainly don't get when I'm driving.

Having gotten through a full five days in a row of bike-commuting (a feat I haven't accomplished since November, given the crazy month of blizzards and record-low temperatures in December), it's starting to feel once again like a regular, everyday thing rather than some heroic battle or dreadful chore. It just feels normal, natural. That's a good feeling.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Week Nineteen - Day Four: Veg Head

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 36 min.
TIME BACK: 34 min.
WEATHER: clear, -21C, 9km/hr wind there; clear, -13C (-21C with wind chill), 19km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: cotton long johns, fleece pants, turtleneck, fleece mid-layer jacket, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
My New Year's Resolution this year is to develop a more vegetarian lifestyle. By that I don't mean actually become a vegetarian. I've done that before, and I've proven I can live without meat for a couple years, and that's as far as I want to take it. After all, my all-time favourite things in the world include delicious grilled steaks and turkey dinners with the family, and I'm not willing to give those up again. However, I think it would be nice to introduce more beans and legumes into my (and my daughter's) diet and even experiment sometimes with tofu recipes. I'm hoping this move will expand my repertoire of dinner options, introduce my daughter to different kinds of foods, contribute to a healthier diet in our household, and even be easier on the ol' bank book. So I'm still "allowed" to eat meat, especially if I go out for dinner, but I don't plan to buy it for the house. We'll see how that goes . . .

If you have any tips for good, easy vegetarian recipes, I'm all ears!!
(Oh, and I'm not interested in recipes that involve "artificial meats" like those rubbery fake hot dogs or that ground unbeef - I figure whatever they have to do to make plant matter taste and look like that couldn't possibly be any better for a person than just eating the real deal!)

As for the biking . . . it is what it is. I find myself praying for a short winter, because I have to say I'm really not loving the winter biking. It's not the cold that does it, it's the terrain - the frozen, snowy, icy roads and sidewalks. I have to work so much harder, I have so many more obstacles to negotiate over or avoid, I go slower and take longer and my hands and feet are always numb by the end of the ride. I just can't wait til all this crap melts away and I can take my usual route again, ride on the roads again, get up to decent speeds without fear of crashing again. I know I should settle in for a long haul, because an Edmonton winter is far from over in early January. Still, a girl can dream . . .

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Week Nineteen - Day Three: Steamy

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 35 min.
TIME BACK: 34 min.
WEATHER: overcast, -20C, 9km/hr wind there; overcast, -19C (-26 with wind chill), 11km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: boots, wool ski socks over business socks, cotton long johns, fleece pants, turtleneck, fleece mid-layer jacket, waterproof shell, lobster gloves, balaclava, ski goggles (goggles, waterproof shell, and wool ski socks in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:
Expecting it to be -28C this morning, as was predicted by The Weather Network last night, I dressed for a very cold ride. It turned out that it wasn't quite that cold, but it was still pretty frigid. My ski goggles fogged up and then froze by the end of the ride, greatly restricting my field of vision by the time I got onto campus. The condensation inside my nose seemed to freeze, leaving me completely unable to breathe through my nose at all until I got indoors and it thawed out (seriously, is that normal??). It was an acceptable ride, though I find I just don't really like winter biking. Oh, how I miss biking in the fall. It was so simple then! No need for multiple layers of ever more restricting clothes, no need for goggles, no negotiating over treacherous snow and ice, riding on the road without fear of hitting ice and falling just in time to get run over by a car, being perfectly able to breathe properly. Sigh!

When I got home today, I dropped the bike off at the house as usual and hopped into the car to pick up my daughter from daycare. When I started the car, I immediately noticed the interior getting choked up with smoke. I looked around myself in a panic, terrified that somehow exhaust was leaking into the car. Then I realized - it wasn't exhaust. It was the steam rising from my body. Within seconds of getting into the car, my body steam had begun quickly filling the the enclosed space and condensing on the inside of the windows. "Huh," I thought to myself, "I guess that's better than exhaust!" So I turned on the heaters full-blast and went on my merry way. Well, as merry as it can be taking my daughter for booster shots, picking up kitty food with a toddler who just wants to run around the store, getting home for a late dinner, putting my daughter to bed, then putting out the garbage and recycling and paying/filing bills. SIGH!! It feels like the day that will never end.

At least it's over soon. :)

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Week Nineteen - Day Two: Curse You, HILLS!!!

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 30 min. (via river valley)
TIME BACK: 37 min. (via road)
WEATHER: overcast, -19C, 7km/hr wind there; overcast, -20C, 6km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: business socks, boots, fleece pants, fleece mid-layer jacket, turtleneck, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:
Oh, River Valley hills, you will be the death of me!

I have a cold - not a full-blown, stay in bed and eat chicken soup all day kind of cold, but enough of a cold to make me feel tired all day and prevent me from sleeping at night. I don't actually recall falling asleep at any point at all last night - I just tossed and turned, blew my nose, had my eyelashes attacked by my kitten, drank water to soothe my sore throat, and continued to toss and turn. I couldn't get comfortable, couldn't breathe through my nose, couldn't sleep. It wasn't pleasant.

Every morning I get in the car and drive my daughter to her daycare, then drive back to the house where I drop off the car, pick up my bike, and bike to work. This morning, it took every ounce of will in my body to drive back to the house and get my bike, rather than stay in the warm car and just drive straight to work. I'm so tired, my chest rattles when I breathe deeply, my nose is at least partially stuffed up - can't I just take a break from biking today??

The problem is that I seem to be sick all the freakin' time. And if I don't bike when I feel under the weather, I'll never bike. So I forced myself to get on the bike this morning. Even within the first block I could feel my legs start to ache from exhaustion - and I hadn't even gotten to the river valley yet, with its snow cover and icy hills. It would appear my Battle of the Hills from yesterday left my thigh muscles sore, and in combination with feeling unwell and having slept poorly, I felt finished just as I was only beginning. Despite my intention to get farther up the big hill at the end of the route than I did yesterday, by the time I got there I just didn't have it in me. I didn't even get as far up as I got yesterday. I just got off the bike and walked it, feeling defeated and exhausted and like my lungs were going to burst. At least I still made it in good time!

On the way home I opted for the road route. It was flat and relatively easy, rather than the horrible uphill struggle it would have been if I had come home through the river valley. Still, despite the flatness of the terrain along the roads, I still felt so tired. I felt like I was barely crawling along, that I was working too hard to be going so slow, and that this ride took forever. In fairness, it did take a long time - 7 minutes longer than my river valley ride to work, which is an increase of 23%. My eyelashes were covered in ice by the end.

Maybe it's that I'm tired. Maybe it's that I'm sick. Maybe it's the December of Debauchery coming back to haunt me, and now I'm paying for how little I biked and how much I ate last month. I got out of shape, out of the routine, and now I'm paying for it. Maybe all of the above. Who knows? All I know is that I'm in need of a long, hot shower tonight, followed by one hell of a night's sleep!

** UPDATE: I figured out what was causing my commutes today to feel so long and difficult! I checked my tire pressure and it seems the frigid temperatures made the air inside the tubes shrink, so the tire pressure was hovering around 20 psi. I pumped them up to their usual 40 psi, and I'm hoping tomorrow's rides will feel a whole lot easier because of it!! **

Monday, January 4, 2010

Week Nineteen - Day One: Valley Girl

BIKE: Mike
TIME THERE: 30 min.
TIME BACK: 29 min. (though it felt muuuuch longer!)
WEATHER: overcast, -15C, 7km/hr winds there; cloudy, -17C, 9km/hr winds back.
WHAT I WORE: fleece pants, business socks (it's Business Time!), turtleneck, fleece mid-layer, lobster gloves, balaclava
NOTES:

Me: "Hmm, I wonder if the river valley bike path is cleared during the winter. That would solve my problem of contending with car traffic, icy roads, and uncleared sidewalks. Sure, I'd have to deal with big hills, but that's probably not as bad as potentially getting hit by cars. Let me check this out . . ."

Research Results:
  • Answer #1: "Yes, the bike path is cleared, and sometimes it's even more clear than the roads!" Source: a friend whose husband routinely bikes to work
  • Answer #2: "Oh, no, they don't clear it - I can see the path from my house and it's all snow." Source: An acquaintance who cross-country skis the river valley in the winter
  • Answer #3: "Paved pathways are cleared when 1 inch (2.5 cm) of snow have accumulated." Source: The Parks & River Valley website
Me: "SCORE! I'm gonna bike through the river valley and see how that works out for me!"

Based on my shrewd PhD-level research as summarized above, this morning I set off determined to check out the conditions of the multi-use path that winds through the river valley and see if it's worth taking that route to school. I've been under the impression that it hasn't been an option for me since the snow fell, as I thought it wasn't maintained in the winter. Well, how wrong I was!! The path is cleared, and although it's covered with a layer of packed-down snow, its condition is light years better than the rutted, icy roads and partly-cleared sidewalks of my usual road-based route. Best of all, I don't have to contend with pedestrians or cars! In fact, I only came across one other living soul each way of my commute, and they hardly presented a crowding issue for me.

So, let me break down the ride for you:
PROS:
  • Instead of saying, "Fuck - ruts! Fuck - snowbank! Fuck - pedestrians!", along my route I repeatedly declared, "Holy fuck - it's beautiful out here!!"
  • It's one hell of a workout, it felt like 10x more of a workout than the flatter, longer road-based route I've been taking so far.
  • It took less time, and especially the ride to school felt much shorter than the road-based rides I'm used to. On the way home, as much as I made good time, I was working so hard for it that it actually felt longer than usual. Nevertheless, the timing in both directions was shorter than what I've been doing lately by road.
CONS:
  • There are no street lights along the pathway, so while it was still somewhat light out on my ride home, I was riding in near darkness the whole way to work in the morning. Good thing I have lights on my bike! Still, it was pretty hard to see much on my morning ride.
  • I felt like I was going to die, just about the whole time. Either I was nervously riding my brakes down the steep, icy, snow-packed hills into the valley and fearing a fall to my death, or I was pedaling my ass off trying to get up the steep, icy, snow-packed hills out of the valley and panting so hard I literally tasted blood. Tasted blood, people. I'm pretty sure that means my lungs got freezer-burnt. I was working so hard up those hills that in both directions I had to get off the bike and walk it up some parts, and I felt like I was going to die. Or vomit. Luckily, I did neither. Luckily, I don't eat right before I bike.
  • I can see the ride home being utterly brutal on a windy day. As it was, I felt the paltry 9km/hr wind as I biked through the river valley about as much as I would feel 15-20km/hr wind on the road. Especially since so much of the ride is uphill on the way home, it makes me lose my will to live when I think of how harsh it would be riding those slippery uphill slopes against a bitter north-westerly wind as it rushed towards me through the wind-funneling river valley.
ASSESSMENT:
The river valley route is absolutely passable, and certainly on the way to work it's a much better option than the road-based route, given the shorter travel time and that it's safer. However, on the way home I'm not convinced it's a better route because so much of it is uphill. I'm up for a challenge, which the uphill battle certainly is, but I'm already an overworked, always sick, full-time student and single parent, so if I don't cycle myself to near-vomiting at the end of the work day, maybe that's not such a bad thing.

Perhaps what I'll do is stick to the river valley multi-use path on the way to work, and challenge myself every week to get farther up the big hill at the end until I can make it to the top without getting off the bike and walking. Then from work, depending on how windy it is and my level of energy/ambition, I can decide whether to take the faster river valley path or the longer but less intense road route. Sounds like a plan to me!

Man, am I ever glad I finally decided to try the river valley path!! So much more pleasant in the morning than the road!

Sunday, January 3, 2010

MONTHLY CHECK-IN

WEIGHT LOSS THIS MONTH: 1 freakin' measly pound!
WEIGHT LOSS TO DATE: 24.5
DAYS COMMUTED: 9
POTENTIAL COMMUTING DAYS MISSED: 10
BREAKDOWN OF EXCUSES USED BY COMMUTE DAYS MISSED:
Bad Road Conditions: 3 Days
"Gift to Myself" the Week Before the Holidays: 3 Days
Cold weather: 2 Days
Got my Cat Neutered: 1 Day
Brought my Toddler Daughter to Work with Me: 1 Day

Ahh, December . . . I drove more days than I commuted, and for the last two weeks of the month (if not three!) I ate like a recovering addict who just fell off the wagon again. Of course, all this was pretty well expected. And quite honestly, I'm just grateful I didn't put on weight and still managed to lose something this month, even if it was just one pound. I had one good week of commuting and eating, and the rest of the month was basically a write-off, between eating poorly (chocolates and donuts at work, going out for dinners and Christmas parties, etc.) and neglecting to bike-commute for over half the month. I'm just glad this slackerly behaviour didn't cause too much damage at the end of the month to erase the hard work that brought me this far. So . . . yay for me??

Now, may the depression being. You see, December can be a pretty wintry month, but all is forgiven because I have the holidays to look forward to at the end. Cold weather? That's okay, I get a week off at the end of the month! Massive dumpings of snow? Great! We'll have a white Christmas! And the whole month is infused with people's good cheer because everyone feels the same way - it's not really winter, it's just Christmas-time!

And now it's January. There is nothing - nothing - to look forward to except the sweet mercy of spring, which won't even begin until April or May. By that point, people will venture out in shorts and t-shirts when it's 10C outside because they are so grateful to be able to feel the sun on their skin again after months of impenetrable darkness and cold. And in the meantime, there is nothing but vast expanses of long blistery months without sun, without heat, without leaving the house unless you have to. The next three months will be hell.

The good news is that if I can keep bike-commuting, and really keep it up unlike I did in December, I'm sure to lose a decent amount of weight because it's so cold and the snow makes the routes so much harder. That thought keeps me feeling positive. And maybe my motivation to bike will be higher because it'll be the only fresh air I'm really going to get. So maybe it'll work out for the best . . . maybe it won't be so depressing after all . . . but it probably will be.